Elizabeth Montagu (1718-1800)

Montagu was one of the most generous and bright women of her time. A genius at business, she used her massive wealth to fight poverty, fund the arts, and empower women. She's most famous for founding the Blue Stockings Society, an influential social club for hyper-intelligent females. The true mark of Montagu's nerdiness, however, is her authorship of a book which claimed that even though Shakespeare is the most revered playwright of all time, he's still not praised enough. We feel you, girl.